After weeks of hype Reincarnation has finally landed – a beautifully absurd short film directed by Karl Lagerfeld ft. Pharrell Williams, Cara Delevingne & Géraldine Chaplin, telling the story of the iconic Chanel jacket. As well as starring in the film, Pharrell wrote and composed CC the World, the soundtrack to the film and he and British model Cara Delevingne sing the duet and show off their impressive waltzing skills. (Is there anything Delevingne can’t do?) The film is the evocation of another era, that of the Austro-Hungarian Empire – brought to life for one night in the heart of the 1950s.
(To watch this short film in Creation 5, just tap here.)
The film tells the story of Coco Chanel, and her inspiration for Chanel’s signature jacket. When she goes to Austria in 1954, she spots the hotel elevator hand (played by Pharrell), who becomes her muse. The 7 minute clip was created to accompany the Chanel Paris-Salzburg 2014/15 Métiers d’art collection shown yesterday (December 2nd) in Salzburg, Austria. Pharrell and Delevingne play mischievous hotel employees who transform into Emperor Franz Joseph I and Empress Elisabeth (“Sisi”) of Austria, respectively, for a combined midnight waltz/duet. (Is the chirped refrain actually CC or Sisi?)
Before the film premiered, Delevingne posted this side-by-side comparison of the Austrian royal family and the Chanel-cast couple on Instagram:
“It was time to show the origins of the CHANEL jacket, inspired by the one worn by the lift attendant in a hotel near Salzburg in the 1950s (…) Reincarnation is the story of a lift attendant’s jacket being reincarnated as a timeless piece of women’s wear,” declares Karl Lagerfeld. “None of this would have been possible without Pharrell Williams, Cara Delevingne and Geraldine Chaplin. It’s the perfect cast. Pharrell is a genius and Geraldine at her best in the role of Gabrielle Chanel in the year of her comeback.”
Pharrell is a close friend of the House and personal friend of Karl Lagerfeld and will be, along with Delevingne, the face of the upcoming campaign of the Paris-Salzburg 2014/15 Métiers d’art collection.
